Will WDW exist 100 years from now?

[Jamesbyr]

The economic effect of AN ATTRACTION in a particular area can be quite strange. (Yes, DISNEY can always "take its profit" at the height and sell off its assets) Here in NYC, our kids belong to the local YMCA swim team. The Ys just had a major meet on Long Island, three days, it is still going on and will finish tomorrow. Parents who bring their children from NYC must rent a car. Others must stay in a hotel that costs more and offers less than a Disney moderate. They must eat in local restaurants. The cash value of this activity is incalculable to the area.
The dynamics in Orlando must be similar.

 

[Mugg Mann]

It's simple economics, and nothing more. If there is still enough demand for the owners of DisneyWorld to be able to turn a profit 100 years from now, then yes, Virginia, there will be a Disney World.

(Now does anyone want to take a guess how much a 1-Day, 1-Park pass will cost 100 years from now?!? )

 

[bicker]

I personally don't believe in a doom-and-gloom future. Despite the cynics, I think that life will be better... much better. I would not want to have had grand-parents' lives or, gasp, my great-grand-parents' lives. The good ole days are good only because we get caught up in how hard we think we have it now. Our lives are much better now... life expectancy is longer than ever... many diseases have been cured... education is better (despite the slow invasion of socialism in our country)... transportation is better... heck, our food is better (yes it is!).

...

I think the future's just fine.

Amen.

 

[Amphigorey]

See also Cory Doctorow's excellent novel Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom for a look at Walt Disney World in the future.

 

[cara76]

I think so. Do you honestly think anyone would even know about Orlando today if it wasn't for WDW? It was just misquito infested swamp land when Walt bought it 30 someodd years ago. Do you think back in 1955 when DL opened people thought it would be around 50 years later? Look at it now...

As long as there is a dream and a wish and a need to feel young again and feel a little bit of magic WDW will always be around!

 

[DrTomorrow]

In 100 years, people's idea of entertainment may have changed so drastically that no one will go to a place like WDW. With the things they are coming up with now, I can't even imagine what it will be like 100 years in the future (given that people/the earth still exists then).[...]Either way, I won't be here to see it.

I'm not so sure. While I'm a big fan of the future (I am DrTomorrow, not DrYesterday ), don't forget that there are a lot of things about entertainment that haven't really changed in hundreds (thousands!) of years. A group of individuals in theater-type seating watching performers on a stage. Ancient Rome/Greece? The Globe Theatre? Indy's Stunt Show?

A ride that takes you up then drops you down. Shoot the Chutes or Tower of Terror? Haven't roller coasters been around for over 100 years? How about boat rides? Even my fav-O-rite Haunted Mansion is just a very-well-done dark ride of decades ago. I even remember a giant IMAX show in Las Vegas that had an effect similar to Soarin' - of course the seats were fixed, but you still were high up looking 'down' on the screen.

Yes, technology has tweaked some of these things, and there are some new things under the sun (M:S - but even that's just a fancy "Round-up"). There will be a WDW in 100 years; some of it will look fantasical, some will look old-fashioned, but it will still be fun for the whole family.

PS - I'm counting on the future to make sure that I am around in 100 years to see it!

 

[Ride Junkie]

I think Disneyland & Disney World will probably be around a long time. There just hasn't been any other type of park / vacation destination better than Disney so far. Someone will have to come up with something really amazing to beat them out.

Here's a thought: What about in 1,000 years. Archaeologists will be digging in the sand and uncover the castle and the big Epcot ball, and say, "What WAS this place?!?"

 

[Kimberly815]

Here's a thought: What about in 1,000 years. Archaeologists will be digging in the sand and uncover the castle and the big Epcot ball, and say, "What WAS this place?!?"

:rotfl That would be a riot!

I sure hope it is around for many more years to come. Although, I am sure I will be back many time before this: I have already told my fiance that we HAVE to go in 2021 for the 50 years of the Magic Kingdom!- so start saving- cause I plan to do it up right!

 

[Park Hopper]

Someone back on page 1 mentioned a terrorist attack,which as we know, is a real possibility. We were in Disney the week after 9/11, and one of the monorail workers led me to believe that WDW was on the "list". Does anyone know anything about this. I'm pretty sure they closed for 1 day but it was before we got there. I never heard much about this afterward so I never knew how true/untrue this was. Anyone else?

One only has to get a look at the bomb barriers that WDW installed at all its service entrances in 2004 to realize that Disney still takes the threat of a terrorist attack very seriously.

The anti-terrorist barricades that Disney installed are similar to those protecting the White House, U.S. embassies and nuclear-waste depots. The hydraulically powered, steel barricades block the service entrances of the four theme parks and are designed to stop a 20,000-pound truck bomb traveling 70 mph. The exact same barricades guard the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

 

[LuluLovesDisney]

As to the argument that wewon't be around in 100 years, I still think that it is important to preserve our most important gifts for future generations. In addition, what about reincarnation? If I come back as a bird or a butterfly, I've got a choice spot on Main Street that I want waiting for me.

I think that as long as our country thrives, Disney World will thrive. I am positive that humanity has a deep need for the comfort, innocence and sense of belonging that Disney provides.

Now, how long our country or even our planet will be around is up for debate, of course. I used to believe that the future was improving. However, noticing so many changes since my youth (and I'm only 25) has left me disillusioned. We've always had rowdy kids, divorces, crime, etc. but never never never so many. This next generation is the first generation to be less well-off (by financial and education standards) than their parents- since colonial times, each generation has improved just a little. School boards and governments are having to lower their standards so more students pass due to No Child Left Behind. The future generation is not on a good path. There are definitely some wonderful kids and teens out there, but I am afraid the others are ruining it for everyone.

Ever read about the fall of Rome? The most powerful nation of its day? The "Holy Roman Empire"? The causes were a sharp decline in the economy, wasting money in unneccessary wars, breakdown of the family unit, growing numbers of illegitimate children, greedy members of nobility, and a lack of discipline in a younger generation. Any of this sound familiar? It does to me!

So I do worry about the future of our country and our planet, and likewise WDW. Yet, I think that the very reasons for these problems I speak of, have their antithesis in WDW. Walt created Disney out of his values with were family, hard work, creativity, imagination, appreciation of nature, constant self-improvement, kindness and generosity- all the opposites of the things that brought Rome down and are bringing our country down. Maybe if everyone really absorbed those values, maybe if every child had a trip to WDW, maybe we could escape that fate, not repeat history and find that WDW and our world still alive and well, and better? in 100 years.